186 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



ENTOMOLOGICAL NOTES, CAPTURES, &c. 



Life-history of Deiopeia pulchella, — The history of 

 this beautiful species, as given in our English works on 

 Lepidoptera, being only a short and imperfect account, 

 copied from continental authors, and as I have just been 

 favoured with the rare opportunity of rearing this species 

 from the eggs (for the first time, 1 believe, in England), the 

 following notes may be interesting. The eggs were most 

 kindly sent me by Mr. Joseph Sidebotham, who had been 

 staying for some months at Mentone, Alpes-Maritimes, in 

 which locality he had the pleasure of seeing Deiopeia 

 pulchella on the wing, in October, 1877, when he got eggs, 

 which duly hatched, but the young larvae refused all kinds of 

 food offered to them. During May, this 1878, the imagines 

 again appeared, and Mr, Sidebotham secured some eggs, 

 which he sent to me by post to try my fortune with them. 

 They reached me May 24th, and some of them had hatched 

 en route. The remaining eggs produced larvaj the day of 

 arrival. Mr. Sidebotham writes to me: — "I find Pulchella 

 round here (Mentone), from the sea level to an elevation of 

 one thousand feet, at which height it is found on the 

 rosemary, a large white-flowered Cistus^ or rock-rose, and on 

 pine trees; at the sea level, where it is more abundant, 

 it frequents myrtle, Trifolium stellatum, Cytisus scorpa- 

 rius" &c. Here too, in England, it shows a partiality for 

 the coast, a few occurring most seasons along the south-west 

 coast, from Kent to Devonshire. When first hatched they 

 are of a dull orange-colour, slightly hairy, sluggish, and of 

 rather a maggot-like appearance ; the head is small and 

 black. The first casting of skin was on June 3rd, when they 

 became darker coloured, and of a greenish black tint, the 

 segments being well defined, a transverse dull orange band 

 and six black spots on each, and a few black bristly hairs. 

 The second moult, i.e. on third skin, the transverse orange 

 bands become less defined, and an interrupted chain of white 

 dorsal spots appear; these spots are of varied characters, 

 largest in the centre of each segment, decreasing both 

 anteriorly and posteriorly, and a spiracular line also appears 

 of a whitish gray colour, the spiracles being of a dull orange. 

 About June 17th the third and final moult took place; and 

 ill this stage they varied very much in different individuals. 

 By taking the most marked forms, or varieties, you might 



